Lily Wang is the new director of Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction at the University of Nebraska. Director of the Durham School is Dr. Wang’s ninth academic appointment since she joined the Nebraska faculty as an assistant professor in architectural engineering in 2000. A nationally recognized expert in acoustics, Dr. Wang also has become one of the most senior female leaders in the College of Engineering, where she was appointed associate dean for faculty and inclusion in 2018.
“I feel very fortunate, I’ve always felt supported here,” she said. “UNL has done a wonderful job at making sure that my career has been supported the whole time. I’ve always felt that my concerns were considered and my research interests are valued.”
As associate dean, Dr. Wang led the effort for the College of Engineering to become a partner in the American Society of Engineering Education Diversity Program. “I started doing a lot of learning about how other people experience engineering and their sense of belonging and inclusion,” she said. In her new role as director of the Durham School, Dr. Wang plans to continue her efforts to connect, mentor, and continue recruiting faculty, staff, and students in underrepresented populations.
Dr. Wang holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering with a certificate in architecture from Princeton University in New Jersey. She received her doctorate in acoustics from Pennsylvania State University.